At 08:55:17 on 28.04.10, NMH wrote:
See if these show what I mean

At 08:55:41 on 28.04.10, NMH wrote:
And this

At 09:37:21 on 28.04.10, YasandCrystal wrote:
NMH, you use a contact to encourage the horse to 'engage' it's hindquarters and lift it's back; once in the 'zone' and doing this the horse becomes as light as a feather in the hand, but with all the engagement and impulsion, as the pictures you have posted demonstrate beautifully. If you look at some of the Haute Ecole bridless work etc the horses are 'engaged' but I am sure this was not achieved without the use of a bridle to start with. A well trained horse once he rider has warmed up and they take up a contact and legs are on will start to engage effortlessly. I liken it to myself on a treadmill, warming up and then increasing my speed and momentum...you reach a point that it becomes effortless to run and you just seem to float.

At 09:38:16 on 28.04.10, YasandCrystal wrote:
I am sure Farasi can add/correct my points lol

At 10:41:47 on 28.04.10, farasi wrote:
Your reins have to be taught to have a contact, they can't flap or sag, they have to be consistant, you move with the horse from your elbow, not by loosening the rein, your reins do not need to be very short. You are not forcing, holding down, or pulling their mouth. You do not need arms built like a body builder to have a contact. There is no tension in those pictures, he is not forcing that horse in anyway shape or form. The horse will be in his hand, he needs to feel it, the horse needs to feel it (Feel not pull, yank or hold). To understand contact, rather than looking at the top level, go back and look at a consistant contact in a young horse starting off.

At 10:55:40 on 28.04.10, kibby wrote:
My instructor says your feel on the reins should be like elastic. move with the horse but never completely slacken

At 10:57:02 on 28.04.10, farasi wrote:
The below link, shows a contact, but also is a stunning example of how a martingale interferes with the straight line from mouth to hand, and effects the rein action by causing a gentle permanent pull down on the reins.
http://www.trotontv.com/community/slideshow/214/5/3273

At 10:59:33 on 28.04.10, farasi wrote:
Another showing consistant contact, without any force. You only need to look at the pictures on this site to see, those with a consistant contact and those without it, and those being forced, pulled and held in place, and the horses are all a different stages of training.
http://www.trotontv.com/community/slideshow/2434/1175/6383

At 11:08:11 on 28.04.10, Dazzle wrote:
I love those pictures of Nuno Oliveira it shows sheer perfection. You could write a book about riding from only one of the photos posted. Infact we should start a new thread, post a picture of what inspires you and why. This man is not only using a full bridle brilliantly but is a complete master of it. There is contact there in bucket loads. The horse is stepping into the bridle and the rider's hands are still and soft and accepting. The hinds are coming underneath and if you asked this horse to either jump a five bar gate, canter, piaffe or simply walk its all there and waiting. I would be interested to know which rein he was working off, I cannot quite make it out - old age, have to hold the computer at arms length to see!

At 11:22:44 on 28.04.10, Dazzle wrote:
Forgot to add, old age again, that I don't think there are more than a dozen people in the world who could emulate this way of riding.